Chilline's T: A Beautiful House on A Hill in Tagaytay

driveway

If you're considering a cozy wedding or a debut with a view, why not look at the property of Chilline Attitude Corporation's T.

entrance

Yes, the name of the place is T.  Perhaps to mean Tagaytay, the property is set by the cliff with a magnificent view of Taal Lake.  It is perfect for a romantic get-away, a nice and quiet vacation for a family, or even to hold special occasions at.  From the driveway alone, the entrance warmly welcomed us with its foliage of light green, amber, and purple.  The first floor is actually thee house's rooftop which is strong enough to hold a gathering for over a hundred guests.

The house is Greek inspired.  It is mainly white with accents made mainly from natural materials - wood and stone. As we walked past the main door, we saw a wooden sofa set accentuated with a psychedelic painting. At least that's what it seemed to me, not that I'm one for the arts.  LOL  Anyhow, it was tastefully done.

stairway

stairway view from the sala

Just like any house on a mountain or a hill, the house's orientation is going down.  the first floor is where the entrance is.  A stone stairway lead us down to the sala  where I had noticed a large stone accent stood in the middle it.  most parts of this level had a view of the lake and the lone pool except for one bedroom that actually opened up to a garden. To the right of the accent we found the dining room which was separated from the poolside  by a glass door  A few meters down from the pool is where the sauna is located.

Another flight of stairs lead us to the basement where another room is.  most rooms have its own toilet and shower.  The master's room has a toilet and shower and a separate bathtub beside the shower.Anyway, I took the liberty of taking some pics.  here they are and you judge whether my description is accurate.

      

sala

dining room

view from the dining room

masters bedroom

bathtub inside the master's bedroom

                                              

Indian Cuisine in Tagaytay

If you like curry, masala, and those indian fare, you must go to the Taj in Tagaytay. A recent visit to the restaurant has taken me by surprise because although I have heard of the fine cuisine they serve, I never thought they meant it to be really GOOD! We had some lamb curry and beef samosa that were both creamy and hot!


Anyway, I tried their spicy yogurt drink and both my husband and daughter had the sweet yogurt. Both were good but since mine is unusual, I thought it to be exotic. Imagine yogurt with some ginger, black pepper and chili. The spice enhance the creaminess of the drink without a hint of sweetness. It was strange at first but when you get used to it, it is a wonderful treat. A word of caution though: if you are not used to eating really flaming, head bursting, mouth-fuming food, do ask for a moderate or light spice. You might find how hot their food is. My daughter was surprised because she has a high tolerance for hot food compared to most Filipinos. But she couldn't eat as much as she wanted because it was too hot for her taste. I liked it and it is as hot as I expected. But that's me.



Taj is not only a restaurant. It is now also a bed and breakfast place. We were allowed to take some pictures so I'm sharing them here with you. It's just sad that the halloween treat was over when we got there. But they do have another promotional offer this nov. until NOv. 30, they're offering their room rates at 50% off with free breakfast and massage for 2 and not to mention a fantastic view of the Taal Lake. That means for as low as Php2,000.00 you can stay there with another person overnight. additional bed costs 1,000 for most rooms. Not bad.

Coffee High?

How far would you go for that caffeine shot?

Today as I was doing my routine "drop" with entrecard, I came across a blog that wrote about the famous, world's most expensive coffee harvested from civet droppings - the coffee Alamid. I couldn't help but smile and chuckle a bit even as I was alone here in the room earlier. Well, primarily because I had gone as far as actually drinking one of those just to satisfy the "gourmet" status that I had bestowed upon myself. Not that I was curious but just because I was self-compelled and self-driven to give it a shot. Duhhh...

I had first heard of the coffee in one of the Agricultural exhibits at the Mega Mall Trade Hall. However, the advertisement had this big pic of a civet and, my curiousity all struggling to get loose, I read one of those tiny leaflets that the smiling lady had handed me. Of course at that time I was too coward to even go near the booth for fear that my curiousity would overpower the nurse in me. But no, I did not take a sip then.

During one of our trips to the Bag of Beans in Tagaytay though my curiousity finally took the better of me and yes, as I confessed earlier, I took that very first sip of that hot, aromatic brownish-blackish beverage served before me during a really wet, and cold day. And how will this article end but on a happy note - yes, I did like that sip and had finished the whole cup. And with a smile I dare say, "That's a great cup 'a coffee!"

New Tagaytay Website

I'm currently consolidating all my Tagaytay tips and travel pages at Squidoo. So, guys, watch out for it. I'll let you know when I'm done. I'd like to get your suggestions for it though. Like, what places interest you, what tips you may have, etc. Surely, I'll give you credit for it. If you'd like a backlink to your site, this is your chance so let those tips roll please?

I do hope you've gotten some of those airline freebies. I did't get any because when I had the chance to, we realized that Ikee might not be free on those dates plus the fact that we might go to the US in December. Anyhow, there'll be other days.



- Jane -

Fine Dining in Tagaytay- Gourmet Cafe

Gourmet Cafe is one of the most popular restaurants in Tagaytay. Funny that though we are an adventurous family, this is the first time we have ever been to their restaurant in the city. My visiting uncle arrived and we took him there to lunch today. It turned to be a very pleasant experience.



There are two places you can eat in - the Cafe and the Fining Dining area. The Fine Dining area is a wonderful, cozy place. A pianist playing some soft music greets us as we entered. There are a few tables spread out in very comfortable distances such that we didn't hear the conversation of guests in the table next to ours. We got there at about 1:30 pm. Fortunately, there were guests who just billed out and we were given a table by the side door with a view of the pineapple plantation which I liked.



From the menu, we ordered Fish and Fries, Seafood Scampi Pasta and Creamy Carbonara. After the orders were placed, my husband along with my daughter and our guest went over to the Salad bar and got food from there too. It was nice to have that bar around because we were so hungry already that waiting for our order would have made our wait unpleasant. Food was great and the ambiance was superb - it was cloudy so the air was relative cooler than the usual for Tagaytay.



After lunch, we toured the place. Gourmet allows it's dining guests to see their 7 hectare farm full of herbs and vegetables which they use in their dishes. The tour guide, Jeremy, told us about the herbs and their uses. He even had us smell some of the herbs which reminded us of our trip to Eden in Davao. Sadly, though, we were in a hurry because my daughter had to chat with her classmates for a project in school. So, we were off to the Cafe which has a wi-fi connection. The laptop had been brought so she could chat while we were in Tagaytay.




At the cafe, we had coffee and some cookies which were herb-flavored. Those were unusual but tasteful flavors that my uncle bought some to bring back to the US. Overall, the dining experience at Gourmet Cafe is well worth the price in their menu - affordable and satisying.

Bon Apetit! - Buon Giorno at the Cliffhouse

Boyet and I went to Tagaytay by ourselves last Dec. It was his birthday and he took a leave so he'd be able to pay for the tax for our Cavite property. Fortunately, I was free because I had just taken the nursing board over the weekend.
We left the house at about 10:30 am and had reached Dasmarinas at 11:45. It would have been past 12 noon if we had gone to the city hall and we'd have to wait. Instead of going to the city hall, we opted to go straight to Tagaytay to have lunch and some coffee.

We headed straight for lunch at Buon Giorno at the Cliffhouse. Boyet ordered some seafood primavera pasta while I had a sandwich. It was really cold outside because it had been drizzling since the night before so I ordered some pumpkin soup to keep me warm. The meal was superb and there was superb. Of course we knew that because we had already gone there thrice. On all occasions they've not failed to serve a meal that was not nearly perfect (nearly because only my mom's is. I'm a loyalist!). Other than just its flavor, food was served at the right temperature. This thime I particularly liked my Roast Beef Sandwich. It had lots of the veggies which I prefer. And the soup was creamy but not too creamy and had a lot of flavor. Next time I'd like to try their dessert. I always end up so full that I don't have room for it. But they do look tempting and I was told they're so mmmmm... delicioso!

Tagaytay - My Daughter's Birthday Celebration for '06

We always want something new for her birthday. So this year we decided we want to go camping since she has gotten this addiction to the activity. Until d'day we were not decided where to camp. Since we had left the house at 10:30 am, we figured we should just go somewhere nearby and agreed to go to Taal Lake Yacht Club in Talisay Batangas. Our first stop on our way to Talisay was to have lunch at Tagaytay . I remembered reading about a blog on the new Cliffhouse in Tagaytay. The adventurous family that we are, we went there straight without knowing exactly what we wanted to eat. It would've been hard to locate the place as the sign is not in a conspicuous place. But having starbucks for a landmark, it was not so difficult to spot after all. The area has a pleasant and cozy atmosphere, away from the crowd. It has not formally been opened but there are about 4 restaurants that have started operating. The was Buon Giorno, Papa Vinz, Massimo (an ice cream stand) and Lake Grill. Since it was her birthday, Ikee had the privilege to choose where she wanted to eat and she wanted pasta. Buon Giorno was the verdict.

Our meal started with an antipasto which consisted of toast and some spread (pesto is one of them). Then we had a seafood marinara and a ravioli. For a drink I had green tea, Ikee had apple caramel shake while Boyet had Limonatta (the Italian lemonade). It was still early when we finished our meal so we had time to go around the place.

Next we went to Chateau Royale. It was agreed that we'd go fishing there but had soon learned that they transferred the fishing area to another place. We didn't have time to go to that place so we visited the organic farm instead. Chateau Royale has a large pool, organic farms, a children's playground, a paintball warzone, wall climbing, billiards, a restaurant, spa, etc. They even have log cabins where families can stay. These cabins have 2 rooms each where a family of 4 can fit comfortably.

After Chateau Royale we visited the Caleruega Church. We've heard so much about this place. Located inside the Evercrest Compound, Caleruega is 2 km from the gate. This place is on a nice rolling hill with the Church itself at the top of the highest hill. The area is basically like a garden - lots of pine trees, plant and beautifully landscaped areas for viewing the farms below. I remember watching a Filipino film shot in this place. It resembles an american countryside complete with the cool weather. While there, we learned that they do have a campsite and decided we want to camp there after this trip. it was 4 pm then and we had to leave for the Taal Lake Yacht Club where we were to camp overnight.